The Michigan Museum of Horror — Attraction in Monroe

I hate to rate any business a one star but unfortunately this museum did not live up to my expectations. The museum was so sparse, I could have walked through the whole thing in 5 minutes. None of the items that are in promotional photos or photos from other reviews even live at the museum anymore. The oddities that I saw were very lackluster and includes a shark tooth, recalled peanut butter jar, and ostrich skull. The entire upstairs was empty except for life-size Halloween mannequins from Spirit Halloween, and some old funeral home furniture that was for sale.

For the items that were on display, I either could not see them because the lighting was so colorful and saturated (picture attached), or there were no descriptions for any items so I was left questioning their authenticity or what they even were. I'd say about 90% percent of everything I saw, I had no clue what it was because of lack of signage. I needed to use my phone flashlight to actually see any items or read anything because it was so dark and blue in there. Also some things were hung very high up, and others so low, so some things I couldn't even read at all, and others I had to bend over and get on the ground with my flashlight to try to guess and see what it was because of the lighting/lack of signage.

I also participated in the lantern lit walking ghost tour of Monroe afterwards and was unfortunately disappointed with this as well. There were only 4 stops on the tour which includes a fountain, a middle school, a small cemetery, and the museum itself. The tour guide was very kind and charismatic, but had us speed walking at a super fast pace over uneven and slippery sidewalks. Basically you will be exercising. Also by "Lantern Lit", the only one with a lantern is the guide and since the groups are so large (30+), you will not be near the lantern light at all. You're just going to walk in the dark and hope not to fall. The group got heckled a lot by the locals during our tour as people in cars honked and jeered at us multiple times. As a paranormal investigator myself, there were barely any ghost stories told and no evidence backing any story up. You don't get to go into any locations, just linger around them for a few , and it felt so odd peering through the middle school windows at night. The tour just felt like a group of way too many of us taking a brisk night walk.

This place has a lot of potential, and a ton of curbside appeal, but unfortunately I do not recommend visiting until they can add more displays, proper lighting and some form of authentication for their displays, so that it can gain the trustworthy reputation it needs as a museum. Especially if you're visiting any time soon, you will not see anything that is listed in other reviews. I like that the owner is trying to bring this to life, and start a lot of other cool macabre projects as well, but I hope this museum can improve to be worth the price of admission. I know most people who come here come from hours away so I just want to tell you to not do this until you can confirm that they are in better standing, as I don't want any of you to leave...

There are things about this museum I see people negatively reviewing, but I think they didn’t do enough research and maybe had the wrong expectations. It is an experience that can be enjoyed without knowing anything about it beforehand, certainly. If you are doing research beforehand, like I did, keep all the information in mind. This is a fairly new business and is obviously a labor of love with more things being added periodically. I understand not everyone can appreciate that. I think those of us who appreciate what it is and is trying to be would like to be able to contribute beyond visiting and buying souvenirs. I’m really excited to see what they’re doing next. I don’t know when I’ll be able to get back up this way, but I will definitely be stopping by again.

I was so excited seeing Lost Boys stuff. My initial reaction was “I found Kiefer!” and I proceeded to find him several more times. I’m a fan of Kiefer, and the rest of his family. Particularly his father. My love for that entire family and my love for horror/thrillers often overlap. I hope to see some Lost Boys: The Tribe memorabilia someday. Kiefer’s brother, Angus was in it. I also hope to see Salem’s Lot (2004) memorabilia. Kiefer’s father was in that. He was also in the Buffy movie, Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978), Virus, Don’t Look Now. Kiefer’s brother, Rossif, was in Orphan: First Kill. Rossif’s son, Ted, was in The Walking Dead: World Beyond.

I didn’t know how I would feel about the Red Room, but I loved it. The gory images might be what gets most people, but it was a different photo which haunts me. This one picture made me think about a friend of mine I lost touch with years ago.

CW: death, substance abuse She OD’d and her “friends” got scared. They didn’t call anyone. Didn’t take her to a hospital. They dumped her in a field and left her to die alone. Her family didn’t know where she was or what happened for several days. The picture made me sad, but then gave me a sense of closure I didn’t know I needed.

I was very excited to be able to hold a real human skull.

I haven’t been to many haunted places and those I have been to took many visits before I experienced anything. Places I went to without expectations of experiencing anything. This was different. I knew it was haunted beforehand, but still had no expectation of experiencing anything. I had an eerie experience of being watched by someone while I was alone upstairs. Whatever presence it was, it did not feel malevolent. The feeling confused me more than it bothered me. I was comfortable enough to go upstairs several times.

I also hope my favorite paranormal group stops by to...

Although I was very excited and eager to attend this event, I was severely disappointed. I had purchased my tickets weeks prior to the grand opening, yet had to wait in a line for 2+ hours alongside individuals who had not even purchased their tickets yet… though we were told it would only take at most 1 hour to get inside (we had arrived early and were properly dressed, so the weather had nothing to do with it). Once inside, there were some cool oddities, but I was told that many vendors “bailed”, so some individual(s) brought in their personal belongings to fill the space.

After waiting an hour and a half in line, groups that consisted of 4-5 people with young children were given permission to cut to the front despite not having waited as long as others (because they had an infant or toddler with them). From there, due to city codes, only a certain number of people were allowed inside at one time. So, the number of people allowed in correlated to the number of people who left- this made the wait even longer as people were taking their time through the museum (which I don’t blame them after waiting so long), but I wish there was a limit to the number of tickets sold for this event to minimize the frustration and anger of those who attended.

The individuals who stood by me in line were extremely irritated in the organization and structure of this event. I tried to give those working the benefit of the doubt as this was their first night open and they “didn’t expect such a huge turnout”, and like I previously mentioned, I was truly looking forward to this event as I love all things horror, but the excessive wait and frustration of the lines ruined the experience for me before even entering the museum.

In the future, I may be willing to come back and give it another shot with a new perspective. But, opening night for us was not the...